In the Daytime, I'm Markiplier
by KittyZozo3366
Summary: Markiplier is given the powers of Ladybug, mysteriously after his friend, JackSepticEye, moves to Los Angeles. Coincidentally, Jack is blessed with similar powers, those of Chat Noir, and the two of them must fight against the mysterious Space Butterfly.
1. Origins

"Come on…" Markiplier muttered as he tried to get through the regularly busy traffic near LAX. His friend, JackSepticEye (known as Jack for short), was moving to Los Angeles, and wanted Mark to pick him up. For some reason, Mark thought Jack wouldn't want to move to the city, but he didn't seem phased when they talked about it earlier.

Soon, Mark had gotten through traffic, made it to the airport, and gotten a decent spot in the airport parking lot. He got out of his car and locked it, a messenger bag slung around his shoulder. Now that he was here, he had to weave his way through the traffic that surrounded the airport. The parking lot was easy, but between it and the main building of LAX was a busy crosswalk. All of them were waiting in a huge mob to go to the building, except for one.

Mark saw an old man, with a Hawaiian shirt, white pants, and a trim moustache-beard combo, hobbling across the walk on a cane. Mark realized that the sign signaling people to cross was still red, and nobody looked willing to help, putting this man in danger. Quickly, Mark ran out into the crosswalk, grabbed the man, and pulled him to the safety of his side of the walk.

Then, the light for people to cross turned green and Mark walked with the mob. He sighed, "I hope Jack doesn't miss me…" Next, he looked back to the old man and said, "Ah, have a nice day, sir!"

The old man smiled and pulled out a strange-looking box, having just placed the other in Mark's bag. "Thank you very much, young man." He then walked away from the scene, not even using his cane.

* * *

"It's him!" someone shouted, and JackSepticEye looked up at the distant shout; was it directed at him? He looked around, and was glad airport security was tight in America, for once. He could see people crowded outside airport check-ins, but in the arrival area, he was safe. No fans should have been here, since he wanted to keep his move to a crowded city secret, but some fans had found a way.

As Jack looked around at the things of the arrival area, the JackSepticEye fans left, as they either noticed he was in no hurry to leave or thought they'd missed him. Jack felt slightly guilty about not at least answering to his fans, but he had other things to worry about now. Once he left the area, he looked around for Mark, his ride, but couldn't spot him around; he had told Jack traffic might be a problem.  
Then, Jack heard a groan of agony to his left. He saw an old man, with a Hawaiian shirt, white pants, and a trim moustache-beard combo, who was reaching out for the cane he dropped. Somehow, in an airport as busy as LAX, nobody seemed to notice but Jack. After he confirmed he was the only one around to help, he sprung to the man's aid and helped him up, putting the cane in his hands. Then, Jack asked, "Are ya alright, sir?"

"Yes, young man, I am." The old man smiled and Jack pulled his hands away. "Thank you."

"Jack?" He heard a familiar voice call out to him, and turned away from the old man. Not too far away, he saw Mark standing there, and Jack's face lit up.

"Mark!" he yelled, confirming to Mark he'd been seen. The two men hugged, and as they did, Jack said, "I'm so glad you got here. How're you?"

"Well, traffic was a mess, but you know how LAX is. What about you?"

"Ah, I'm a little jet-lagged, but I can sleep it off." Jack pulled out his phone from his bag. "I got the directions to my new place right here."

"Good to hear. Now come on, I got a good parking spot not far from the building." Mark led them to the exit and Jack followed. As they walked away, Jack looked back to see where the old man went, but to his surprise, he couldn't see him anywhere.

* * *

Once Jack was safely at his new house, Mark headed to his home, which as he found out on the drive back, wasn't that far away. Mark shared the place with a few of his friends, but all of them except him were busy for the day. He went up to his bedroom to relax for a little bit, and he opened his bag. He rummaged around for his phone, but as he did, a small, foreign, hexagonal box fell out of his bag.

Mark looked at the box that fell out of his bag with intrigue. It looked oriental, probably Chinese, in design and was black with red markings. Something about it felt…otherworldly, but Mark felt no fear when opening it. It was a pair of earrings that looked ladybug-inspired: red with five black dots on each. Immediately after Mark opened the box, a pink ball of light grew from the earrings, and that's when he felt fear. He dropped the box and fell out of his chair, muttering, "Nope, nope, nope, nope!"

From the pink ball of light, a small creature formed, and Mark watched the short process with awe. The creature looked like some hovering-chibi-thing with the same ladybug pattern on its body, its long antennae and big blue eyes complimenting this. "Oh my gosh!" Mark exclaimed. "You are the cutest little fairy thing I've ever seen!"

Tikki giggled. "Oh, that's so sweet of you to sa-"

"I need to make a YouTube video about this!"

"Wait, what?"

"I'm gonna set up the camera!" Mark got up from the floor.

"No! Mark, wait!" Tikki flew in front of him, managing to stop him before he grabbed his camera. "Mark, this is serious. You can't tell anyone about me."

"Got it. Except for Tyler, Ethan, and my followers."

"B-But you can't tell anyone!"

"Hearing you loud and clear. Just Tyler and Ethan."

"NOBODY! Not a single person!"

"Soooo... just Tyler?"

Tikki bashed her head repeatedly against a wall, feeling like the wall was smarter than Mark was acting at the moment. Slowly, Mark put down the camera. After thirty seconds of head-bashing, the Kwami took a deep breath and turned back to him. "Allow me to introduce myself properly now. My name is Tikki."

"Oh, sorry about that. Hi, my name is Mark. I guess I also go by Markiplier." He extended a hand for her to shake, but then he realized his hand was massive compared to her arm-paw-appendages. He then put his hand back to his side sheepishly. "So what are you, exactly?"

"I'm a Kwami, Mark. I was sent here to give you extraordinary powers!"

Mark's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. "Extraordinary powers? Like a superhero? I'M GONNA BE A SUPERHERO!?"

"Yes, yes! But you can't tell anyone!"

Mark nodded frantically, starting to calm down. "Right, right, you established that. Sorry about earlier, Tikki—my excitement got the better of me."

Tikki smiled, and Mark tried hard not to squeal at how adorable she looked. "It's okay. Now, put on the earrings so your powers can activate."

He blinked, and said almost robotically, "Put…them on."

The Kwami stopped smiling, and tilted her head. "Is there a problem?"

"Well, I… I don't have my ears pierced." Mark grabbed his earlobe to show her, and she flew over to it just to make sure. Sure enough, there was no small hole to indicate piercing. "It's not really a thing I've been interested in."

"Y-You need to get them pierced! If you don't pierce your ears, THE WORLD COULD BE DESTROYED."

"Can't I just have clip-ons, Tikki?!"

Tikki folded her arms. "That's not how it works! The earrings only allow for pierced ears."

"I don't care! I'm NOT getting my ears pierced!"

"It's not weird for a guy to get his ears pierced nowadays! R-Right?"

"But I don't wanna piece my ears! What if I told you to poke a needle through your flesh to leave a permanent hole?!"

"Well, uh..." Tikki phased through a nearby table, appearing underneath it. "Kwami don't have a permanent form." She chuckled nervously.

Mark knelt to talk to her from under the table. "Exactly. So, NO piercing my ears."

"But Mark, if you don't wear them, I..." She looked at him sternly. "I won't come back, and you'll _never_ get your powers."

Mark frowned, folding his arms. "FINE! I'll pierce my damn ears to become a superhero!"

"Yay!" Tikki nuzzled his cheek, and he couldn't help but blush.

* * *

When he got to his new house, Jack had to make it through a maze of boxes and movers just to make it to his bedroom. There wasn't much yet, but at least there was a bed to sleep on and a lamp in the corner. He flopped down on the bed and rummaged through his bag for his phone, but he felt something else. He pulled the thing out and found an ornate-looking box in his hand. It looked oriental, probably Chinese, in design and was black with red markings. Something about it felt…otherworldly, but Jack felt no fear when opening it.

Inside was a black ring with a bright green cat's paw in the center, and after Jack opened it, a green ball of light grew from the piece of jewelry. Jack still held the box, and watched as the orb turned into a small creature, that looked like a chibi humanoid black cat. It yawned as it woke up and looked to Jack, who was still in shock. "Uh, hey, I'm Plagg. Nice to meet you...uh…and your name is…?"

"I-I'm Jack. Can you explain jus'…" Jack trailed off as Plagg floated to the bathroom connected to Jack's bedroom.

"Ohh! So shiny!" The Kwami exclaimed as he looked around. He then noticed Jack's toothbrush. "Can you eat this?" He pouted as he found the thing inedible. "No, you can't."

"Hey, don't stick that in your mouth!" Jack pulled the toothbrush from Plagg's little hands. "Now what—"

Jack's tube of toothpaste then caught Plagg's eye. "Ooh, what about this?"

"Ah, no!" Jack grabbed the Kwami with his free hand. "Yer not eatin' anything until you tell me what the fuck you are!"

Plagg explained quickly, "Look, I'm a Kwami. I grant powers. Yours is the power of destruction. Got it? Good. Now, you got anything to eat? I'm starving..."  
Jack picked up on the "I grant powers" part immediately, but then he realized the "Kwami" was hungry. "Well, I don't have much in the way of food right now, but how about some peanuts I got from the plane?"

Plagg shook his head, and Jack frowned. "How about I go down the street and get s-!"

Again, the Kwami shook his head, and Jack got a little more irritated. "Maybe we could go out for lunch, 'cause-!"

Yet again, Plagg shook his head. "Then what DO you wanna eat, ya dick!?"

Plagg floated out of Jack's hand. "If you expect me to get my energy back after a transformation, I need to eat something more... delicate!"

"What?" Jack asked, not having a clue what the Kwami was talking about.

"If you want to be able to transform into a superhero, then stinky cheese is the deal, my friend!"

Jack sighed and went down to the small shop he tried to tell Plagg about earlier. Considering it was a small "quick-stop" store, there were only a few types of cheeses. Since he didn't want to look like a weirdo for sniffing cheese, he decided the pack of swiss slices would be the "most stinky."

When Jack got back, Plagg looked neutrally at the swiss cheese. "Well, it's not Camembert, but on short notice…" The Kwami dug into the cheese slice pack, phasing through before Jack could even open it. He still opened it so Plagg could get some air as he ate. Jack expected him to only eat one slice, but then he ate a second one, followed by a third.

"Why the fuck do you keep eatin' cheese, you greedy bastard?!" Jack exclaimed. "This is yer FIFTH slice! Just turn me into a hero already!"

"Well…" Plagg nibbled on the cheese in front of him more. "Just put on the ring and say 'claws out'- that's how you transform."

Jack smirked as he put on the now-white ring. "Got it." He thrust out his arm like he was about to bro-fist someone. "PLAGG, GET YOUR FECKIN' CLAWS OUT!"

"Wait, wait! I haven't finished eating yet!" Plagg screamed as he got sucked up into the white ring, turning it black. With finesse and ease, Jack changed into his magical superhero costume in a stylish manner. During the transformation, his hair changed color to green, a color he'd previously dyed it. Once he finished transforming, he felt some strange weight on his waist that wasn't just the tail-like belt. He reached behind him and grabbed what he presumed to be his weapon. It appeared to be a silvery rod, but with a push of the cat-paw symbol in the middle, it extended into a sleek, metallic staff.

"A staff? Why can't I have, like, a katanna?" Jack knew Plagg couldn't answer for him now, so he started pole-vaulting around to get a feel for it. He got out of his house, onto the roof, and then jumped with the help of the staff. Unfortunately, his fear of heights kicked in, and as he landed on someone else's roof, he started to breathe heavily. He backed away from the edge, and once he was safe in the center, he said to himself, "Ho-kay, Jack-aboy, just imagine yer jumpin' around in Clustertruck, but with less _rage_ and more _awesome_. This is nothin' more than the latest VR game and…"

His speech to himself seemed to work, and he crossed the gap with ease, using the staff to propel himself over the gap between buildings. After getting over the fear of heights, Jack continued jumping over buildings to become more confident in his skills. Nobody would know this was JackSepticEye, after all.

* * *

Mark groaned as he exited the tattoo and piercing shop at the mall, rubbing one of his pierced ears; just being pierced meant it hurt like _heck_. He looked around the mall as he rubbed his ear, trying to be discreet about it.

He wanted to talk to Tikki, who was in his bag, but he couldn't talk to his bag. He got the idea to put his phone to his ear as if he was talking to someone over the phone. "So, Tikki, should I put these on now?"

The Kwami nodded eagerly, and replied, "Yes, put them on quickly. You never know when you'll be needed." Mark headed into the nearest men's bathroom and took out the mysterious box Tikki came from. Inside, the earrings were still there, but they had turned black. He put them on once he was in a stall and Tikki flew out of his bag.

Mark asked her, "So, what do I do now…?"

"Well…" She put one of her "paws" to her chin as she thought. "I think it'd be good to test out your powers before an emergency."

"What exactly are my powers with these on?"

"First you need to say 'Tikki, transform me.'"

"O-kay…" Mark brushed his hair out of his face and stood up confidently. "Tikki, transform me!" Tikki disappeared into the earrings and turned them back to their original ladybug patterning. A ladybug mask appeared over Mark's face, and pink magic spread over his clothes. They changed into a ladybug-patterned top with a black collar and black sleeves, ladybug-patterned gloves, black pants, and ladybug-patterned boots. Transforming with the rest of his outfit, Mark's hair changed from black to red, a color he'd previously dyed it to.

After posing confidently, Mark felt self-conscious being dressed up as a superhero in a bathroom. Going outside the bathroom and into the public space of the mall made him feel even worse. Without the mask on, he was Markiplier, Youtuber, but overall, a normal guy. With the mask on, nobody would identify him, and most people saw a stranger in a strange costume. To calm himself down, he started to think. _Once I'm out of the mall, I can practice my powers, I hope… Wait, what's that?_

Mark looked up and saw, on the skylight, a black figure with cat ears running across the roof of the mall. Everyone else who noticed it was stunned, but Mark ran outside the mall, just in time to see where the figure was heading. He finally noticed the yo-yo around his waist like a belt, and grabbed it, the string retracting as he did so. He swung the yo-yo, aiming for the roof, and it attached to a rain gutter. As he pulled on the rope, he was pulled up to the roof, and grabbed the edge of it, fearing that he'd drop off.

Once he climbed on the roof, he raced after the figure, who seemed to have no goal in his running. After a few minutes of chasing, it was clear that Mark couldn't catch up, and the figure still hadn't noticed him. To get his attention, Mark exclaimed, "HEY!"

Jack turned to the voice, and saw a man dressed in ladybug-patterned clothing; despite the fact Jack and Mark had met in real life, the magical masks hid their true identities from each other. Jack said back, kind of nervous, "H-Hey."

"Are you like, my partner or something?"

"Partner? I didn't know I was s'posed to have a partner, but anyway, I'm… Chat Noir. Yeah, Chat Noir. And you?" He extended a hand for Mark to shake.

Mark smiled, and shook the hand in front of him. "I guess you can call me Ladybug."


	2. Weathidor

"Happy birthday!" the Grumps cheered for Barry, and he started carving up his birthday cake. He cut the cake into eight slices, despite the fact only Arin, Suzy, and Ross were with him at the Grumps' office.

After they had their cake slices, Suzy pulled out a thin, but wide present. "Hey, Barry, we all pitched in to get you a little somethin'."

Barry smirked. "You guys didn't have to get me anything."

"I know, but you're one of our best friends, so…" Suzy shrugged and gave him the present. He opened it to find a brand-new tablet. It was still in the box, so he opened the box to find a black tablet. Suzy continued, "We weren't sure if you wanted a specific color, so we got you the standard."

"Aw, guys, this..." Barry said as he looked over the tablet, and then at his three friends. "This is really great."

"Oh!" Arin exclaimed as he got an idea. "You know what we can do with a new tablet? Together?" He turned on the nearest computer and pulled up his Steam account. "You Don't Know Jack." The group agreed and gathered on the couch to play. As Arin set everything up, Barry used his tablet to look up the weather in New York, all the way across the country.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a nearby, but undisclosed location, a butterfly-shaped window opened, showing the sprawling city of Los Angeles in the distance. Hundreds of butterflies flew around, disturbed by the sudden light. "Someone wishes to escape the heat of LA?" Space Butterfly asked… well, nobody, really, but then he smirked. "I can work with that. Finally, a chance to show off my new powers."

A butterfly flew into his hand and as he covered it with his other hand, it turned into a dark Akuma. The Akuma fluttered out the open window and Space Butterfly said, "Fly, my little Akuma, and darken his heart!"

* * *

Near the bar in the Grumps' office, after the game, Barry looked forlornly over the weather in New York on the tablet: it was snowing there, and he had heard they might get up to a foot, maybe two. However, he was stuck in Los Angeles, where the weather was always pleasant, which was slowly driving him insane. Even though December had just started, he longed for the changing weather that anywhere, _but_ Los Angeles, offered.

As Barry realized he was still with his friends, who were trying their best to throw him a good party, something collided with the tablet; nobody else noticed it but Barry, who only made out a small dark shape before contact. Something came over his face, and all he could feel was the need for snow, and cold, and whatever else he desired moments ago…

Then, he heard a voice: " _Weathidor… Do you long for cold weather in this eternal heat? I am Space Butterfly, and I can give you that and more. But you must do something for me first._ "

"Anything you want, Space Butterfly." Barry grinned evilly, not really thinking about anything but the weather he wanted now.

"Barry? Did you say something…?" Suzy turned and gasped as she saw Barry covered in a black, bubbly mist. When the mist cleared, Barry looked completely different: His skin was pale; his hair was dark blue with a white, lightning bolt streaked through it; over his eyes was a mask with small curves under it; he wore a dark blue suit with a white collar, white lightning bolts on the sides; and an icicle-like belt. His tablet was still in his hand, but instead of being black, it was now pure white.

"I'm not Barry anymore, Suzy. I'm Weathidor. And unfortunately for you, there's a freak ice storm coming your way RIGHT NOW!" Using his tablet, Weathidor launched a frigid wind at Suzy that blanketed her and the bar in frost. Luckily, Suzy just shook off the frost like it was harmless.

Arin and Ross noticed what happened and came to Suzy's aid. Weathidor was ready to launch an attack at them, but someone grabbed his shoulder from behind. He turned around to see Suzy. She pouted at him, hoping Weathidor would listen to her as she said calmly, "Barry, please be reasonable. We want to give you a party you want, and we can't do it in a freezer." Weathidor stayed silent, which made Suzy think he was contemplating her words. Then, he turned for the exit to the office and walked away. Suzy, determined to stop his rampage before it started, followed him to the door. Despite being only a few steps behind him, she couldn't catch up to Weathidor before he slammed the door shut. "Shit," Suzy uttered. "I thought that would work." She tried to open the office door, but it wouldn't budge. "And Barry froze the lock. If we want to follow him, we'll have to try another way out."

"I don't think we should find a way out," Ross replied- he and Arin had just caught up to Suzy. "There's nothing we can do about Barry's sour attitude, or the weird powers. Maybe we can adjust the thermostat to unfreeze the l-"

"Ross." Arin nudged him to get his attention, and he pointed to a nearby window. Ross and Suzy looked in the same direction, and their expressions changed from saddened to shock: the windows were frosting up, and the frost was spreading into the room.

"Crap!" Ross exclaimed, but he had an idea; he ran to the thermostat to try and adjust it higher, but the sudden cold spike left it flashing **ERROR**. "The thermostat's busted because of the frost- what are we gonna do now!?"

"We need to find a way out," Suzy answered, sounding determined. "If the whole place freezes over, we could be stuck here…and freeze to death." Suzy, Arin and Ross tried to open the windows before they freeze over, with little success.

* * *

Jack sighed as he looked over his grocery list. Amongst the usual items that he got for himself, he'd put "Camembert cheese" on the list, for his Kwami, Plagg. Over the past few days, he learned that all he ate was the cheese. As he looked over the list one more time, he lamented to himself, "Camembert cheese. Fantastic. All he eats is Camembert, which means I'm gonna smell like stinky old cheese."

Jack looked up from the grocery list as the television he turned on for background noise got his attention with a breaking news alert: " _As incredible as it seems, it's been confirmed that Los Angeles is indeed being attacked by a supervillain_." At those words, he turned up the volume to make sure what he was hearing was correct, and maybe alert Plagg. _"This supervillain has been caught by amateur footage covering Los Angeles in snow. Civilians are advised to stay indoors until the authorities can capture him and put him to justice."_

The amateur footage played, showing Weathidor summoning snow clouds. Then, Weathidor noticed the cameraman and the cameraman gasped. Jack's eyes widened as he watched the cameraman and his phone get frozen before the footage stopped altogether. Plagg had made it downstairs and pointed to Weathidor. "That's definitely an Akuma."

"Well, I'm gonna fight it." Jack got up from the couch. "That's my second job now, apparently."

"Do you think you're ready?" Plagg asked, getting in front of Jack's chest. "Remember, only Ladybug can capture Akumas and repair damage caused by supervillains. You're basically a sidekick."

"Cataclysm, powers of destruction, need Ladybug, he'll probably be there anyway- got it." Jack made sure his ring was secure before holding out his arm. "PLAGG, GET YOUR FECKIN' CLAWS OUT!"

* * *

The police glared down at Weathidor, and he glared back. The police chief announced, "Stand down, or we'll be forced to shoot!" Weathidor only replied by shaking his head. The chief huffed and signaled for his men to start shooting. Unfortunately for them, Weathidor was prepared: with some quick moves on his tablet, a gust of wind pushed not only the bullets back, but the police, and finally their cars!

Chat Noir was getting used to pole-vaulting to get around. Despite his fear of heights, he knew Spider-Man once had a fear of heights too, at least in some versions. If Spidey could overcome it, so could he. What he did not expect as he parkoured around, was a car flying overhead. He watched it spin in the air, and then crash to the ground close by.

He turned from the car to see Weathidor walking towards him menacingly. Chat Noir thought it'd be a good time to make his first superhero quip: "Hey, Jon Snow, don't you know that winter is coming? I think it's time you…cooled off."

"My name is not Jon Snow, it's Weathidor!" The villain put his finger to the tablet, and when he pushed his finger forward, he launched another huge gust of wind towards Chat Noir.

As Chat was fired back, he managed to grab onto a lamppost for dear life. "GOD!" he cursed, holding on as hard as he could as Weathidor tried to throw him back again. "WHERE THE HELL IS LADYBUG!?"

* * *

Mark was setting up to record a new game, when he saw snow falling outside. His eyes widened, and he asked, "Tikki, do you see this?"

Tikki flew to the window and gasped. "Do you think it's an Akuma?"

"Well, I can't really think of any other explanation."

The Kwami looked to Mark, determination in her large blue eyes. "Do you think you're ready for this?"

"Lucky charm, powers of creation, I'm the only one who can really save the day, hope Chat Noir is there," Mark listed off. "TIKKI, TRANSFORM ME!"

After Mark transformed, Ladybug swung over the city, searching for any sign of Weathidor. He found the villain still trying to blow Chat Noir back. Even though Chat Noir looked like he had been blown away multiple times, he kept getting up.

" _Stop toying around with him!_ " Space Butterfly's voice echoed in Weathidor's head. " _I need that Miraculous._ " Weathidor huffed at his superior's words but obeyed by launching himself to Chat Noir with a gust of wind. Chat Noir screamed, but fortunately, he was close to a few buildings; Ladybug caught Chat Noir with his yo-yo, pulling him into an alleyway.

Chat Noir sighed in relief, "Ladybug, thank God- I was wonderin' when you'd show up."

"Did you forget about me!?" Weathidor shouts as he turns into the alleyway. Ladybug grabs Chat Noir and swings up to a rooftop. Weathidor launches himself up with a gust of air and pursues Ladybug and Chat Noir closely. The heroes run from Weathidor, but the villain is happy to chase them.

Ladybug pants as he runs, "If we get Weathidor up to higher ground… he won't be able to throw as much stuff at us."

"So we just keep… going higher and higher?" Chat Noir replied, also panting.

"Maybe…we can take Weathidor…to the highest point…" Both heroes looked for the highest point around them, and Ladybug spotted a television station to their right. The station was a cylindrical skyscraper with walls that were almost entirely composed of windows with thin white railing between them. At the top of the studio was a large billboard, which gave Chat an idea. As they both have the same idea, the heroes jump from the roof they were running on to another roof on the right.

They continue jumping from roof to roof, and Weathidor stops to watch them. He hears Space Butterfly speak to him: " _Well? What are you waiting for? Catch up to them to get their Miraculous!"_

However, Space Butterfly realized Weathidor was looking past the heroes to the television studio. He smirked as he saw how close to the snow clouds it was and replied, "I think they'll catch up to me. It's time I make myself known to all of Los Angeles- nay, the world." Weathidor used his tablet to launch himself across many roofs, towards the studio. He jumps across the alleyway Ladybug and Chat Noir were hiding in, failing to notice that they weren't jumping towards the studio.

Chat asked as Weathidor jumped from the roofs, "Why are we hiding down here?"

Ladybug explained, "It's part of the plan- we follow Weathidor from behind and catch him off guard at the studio."

"Wait- wait a minute…" Chat Noir noticed Ladybug's yo-yo, which he hadn't used last time, and exclaimed to the heavens, "How come he gets a fuckin' yo-yo?!"

Ladybug looked confused. "Um…I'm not happy about having a yo-yo either."

"IT'S STILL BETTER THAN A FUCKIN' STAFF! I—" Ladybug covered his loud friend's mouth, as to not attract Weathidor's attention. Ladybug nodded to Chat once Weathidor ran past, and they followed the villain from behind, trying to be stealthy.

* * *

The television studio looked completely deserted, inside and outside, due to the snowy weather. So Weathidor wasn't surprised when he landed on the roof without interruption. With just a few movements of his fingers across the tablet, the dangerous storm got even worse: snow rained down in larger chunks, the wind picked up, and small bits of hail mixed with the snow. Weathidor laughed as the cloudy skies became darker. "In Weathidor's world, it's a winter wonderland **FOREVER!** "

"That's what you think!" Chat Noir declared as he and Ladybug came up from behind Weathidor. He turned to see Chat Noir announce his attack: "CATACLYSM!" He swished his glowing black claw against the hinges of a billboard, and then ran. Ladybug and Weathidor also ran, so they wouldn't get trapped under the falling billboard. The billboard crashed down, leaving half of the roof open for Ladybug and Chat Noir to use in the final battle against Weathidor.

Ladybug needed something more than his yo-yo to stop the villain at this point, but what? After a moment of thought, something kicked in like a deep instinct: he threw his yo-yo in the air and yelled, "LUCKY CHARM!" It swirled with pink magic, and above him appeared...a blanket. It fell into his hands and he muttered to himself, "What am I supposed to do with this...?"

The blanket's purpose didn't become clear until Ladybug started looking around. Everything was grey, but a few key items turned the same ladybug pattern of the blanket: his yo-yo, a safety pin that had fallen on the ground, and the tablet in Weathidor's hands. Once it was clear what he had to do, Ladybug picked up the pin and secured the blanket around his neck with it, giving himself a cape. The blanket provided much-needed protection from the cold, but he knew that was not its only purpose.

"That's how you're going to save yourself?" Weathidor laughed, and he tried to blow Ladybug back with his new cape. The superhero struggled with the wind, but he wouldn't be wearing the cape for much longer. As he threw his yo-yo through the gusts, it grabbed the right item, Weathidor's tablet, and Ladybug attached the string end to the safety pin. All Weathidor could do was scream, "NO!" as the tablet flew out of his hands, and then hit the roof once the wind stopped.

Out of the broken tablet flew a dark-colored butterfly, and Ladybug announced, "Okay, time to free this thing from evil!" He swung his yo-yo around and grabbed the Akuma before it flew away. "Gotcha." He let it go, and then threw the blanket, sending a wave of magic that restored things to before Weathidor's attack on Los Angeles. The Grumps' apartment thawed, and Arin, Suzy, and Ross hugged each other, feeling warmth. As the Akuma's damage erased itself from reality, the snow falling from the sky quickly turned to rain, the air temperature rising back to normal. Finally, Weathidor turned back into Barry, and he groggily picked up his restored tablet.

"Where am I…?" he asked as he got up and looked around. Then he noticed Ladybug and Chat Noir. "Who the heck are you?"

Ladybug introduced himself. "I'm Ladybug, and this is Chat Noir. We just saved your life."

"You should probably get inside- rain and all that," Chat Noir added, and Barry went to the door on the roof.

Ladybug looked to Chat Noir and said, "We should probably get going."

"Wait!" Chat Noir grabbed Ladybug's hand. "There's something I need to do first…" He leaned in close to Ladybug's face, and then, instead of what Ladybug expected, Chat Noir yelled, "Holy crap, Mark! How many green-haired, Irish, JACKABOYS do you know!? It's _me_ , JackSepticEye!"

"JACK!" Ladybug bonked him against the head with his yo-yo, but not enough to hurt. "YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO TELL ME!"

"It was glaringly obvious that you're Ladybug, and I'm Chat Noir!" Chat pointed out. "I jus' wanted to get it out of the way before you act like a complete weirdo about this secret identity thing! I mean, if we're gonna be workin' together, I think it's better we know who we are."

Ladybug sighed. "Fine, but Tikki and…your Kwami aren't gonna be happy with this."

Chat Noir smirked. "Fine by me. His name's Plagg, by the way. He's a lazy-ass, so he deserves this." His ring then beeped. "Fuck, it's forcin' me to change back. I'll see you downstairs, okay?"

Ladybug heard his earrings beep. "Yeah, mine too. See you around, Chat." He used his yo-yo to swing to somewhere safe, while Chat ran to the door that led to the stairs.

* * *

Mark came out of the building and felt rain hit his head. He was stuck without an umbrella, and on what would probably be the rainiest day of the month. Jack followed him out, and somehow, he had an umbrella with him. He waved to Mark and said, "Hey," but Mark didn't acknowledge him.

Jack frowned as his friend refused to acknowledge him. Was this because of the whole "secret identity revealed" thing? He was kind of afraid to ask, but he explained himself anyway. "I just told you about my secret identity because I thought… keeping secrets from you was stupid, ya know? You're a close friend, and this whole superhero thing is…new to me." Then, he covered Mark with his umbrella.

After looking Jack over, Mark took the umbrella…only for it to immediately snap shut on his face. Jack couldn't help but laugh as Mark cursed under the umbrella and pulled it open frantically. Once Mark was holding it properly, the two walked to the bus stop to get some transport home. Watching several feet away, Master Fu raised up his umbrella as Jack and Mark walked away, holding the umbrella together. He smiled, and said to Wayzz, "Those two are made for each other."

The Kwami gave a small shrug. "If you say so, Master."


	3. Copyjack

"So, why did you choose the name 'Chat Noir'?" Mark asked as he set the table up with Jack. They were at a local convention, hoping to promote their Cloak clothing brand by selling some items and autographing already-purchased clothes.

After lining up the table, Jack replied, "It's 'Black Cat' in French. I just thought French would sound cool."

The rest of the setup was in silence. Mark and Jack helped some of the convention staff pitch a banner behind the table. Some other staff got the duo chairs and water bottles. Now at their chairs, Mark and Jack laid out the clothing in stacks. Once everything was ready, Mark asked, "So, aren't you gonna ask about MY superhero name?"

"...Yer superhero name is Ladybug," Jack pointed out. "It's not that much of a stretch, but why didn't you go with something more…masculine?"

Mark scoffed, "I'm already assured of my masculinity, Jack, and the name 'Ladybug' isn't gonna change that."

Once the convention started, everything seemed to be going smoothly: some people bought the Cloak products on display after seeing them for real, while others got their previously-owned Cloak products signed by the creators. After about an hour at the Cloak stand, a woman brought her hoodie to the table. The woman looked to be in her early twenties, with pale skin, long blonde hair, and brown eyes. She also wore a Cloak hat, which will be important soon.

Mark asked her as he grabbed the hoodie, "What's your name, miss?"

"I'm Tandy." The girl smiled, maybe a little too wide. Mark wrote _To Tandy, From Markiplier_ on the sleeve of the hoodie, and then handed it back to her. She took the hoodie, still smiling widely.

Then, she took out a Cloak beanie, but Mark put his hand up. "One signature per person, miss. Those are the rules."

"I-I'm sure you can make an exception…for me?" Tandy put her hand to Mark's, like she felt some sort of special draw to him. She looked Mark in the eyes, and she looked desperate, like she would not live until she got this second object signed. When he saw the obsessive desire in eyes, he realized how much worse this situation could get.

"Security!" Jack must've noticed Tandy's eyes too, because he spoke up first.

A security guard pushed his way into the line and pulled Tandy from it. He said, "You're disrupting the line."

Tandy glared at the guard, not scared of him despite his bigger size. "I paid to get in this line- you can't stop me!" That seemed to be the last straw; the guard grabbed her by the arm and took her from the line, leaving her unsigned hat on the table. Tandy shouted as she was dragged away, "I'll be back!"

"That was weird, huh, Jack?" Mark asked his friend, but all Jack did was watch as Tandy was pulled away. "Jack?"

Jack had a bad feeling about Tandy, but he wasn't sure why. Soon, he snapped out of it and responded to Mark. "Y-Yeah, weird."

* * *

Meanwhile, in a nearby, but undisclosed location, a butterfly-shaped window opened, showing the sprawling city of Los Angeles in the distance. Hundreds of butterflies flew around, disturbed by the sudden light. "Disappointed by Markiplier, and jealous of JackSepticEye- the perfect formula for disaster." A butterfly flew into his hand and as he covered it with his other hand, it turned into a dark Akuma. The Akuma fluttered out the open window and Space Butterfly said, "Fly, my little Akuma, and darken her heart!"

* * *

Tandy huffed as she was pushed out of the convention center; the guard brought her to the nearest exit, but enough people had seen her for her to feel humiliated. She put on her Cloak hoodie and huffed again. Disappointed in Mark, Jack, and herself (but only slightly), she didn't notice the black butterfly connect with her hoodie's sleeve. A purple light outlined her face and she heard a voice in her head: " _Hello, Copyjack, I'm Space Butterfly. Once you get rid of JackSepticEye, you can take his place, and Markiplier will be yours forever_."

Tandy smirks. "The thought of it makes me want to scream." Her body became covered in a black, bubbly mist, and when the mist disappeared, she looked exactly like JackSepticEye did at the convention. She -now he- said to himself, "Time to ruin Jack's sterlin' reputation," and then ran off to steal something valuable.

* * *

After the convention, Jack went home and got himself some dinner from the fridge. He also got some Camembert for Plagg. Jack had the news on in the background; he usually wouldn't have it on, but Plagg insisted he keep it on in case of an Akuma attack. It proved useful when the newscaster announced, " _And in some astonishing news, there's been a spectacular theft at the Getty, of_ Lot and His Daughters _. Amateur video showed, without a shadow of a doubt, that the thief is none other than the famous YouTuber, JackSepticEye._ "

"Wait, WHAT?!" Jack exclaimed.

On the television, Jack watched as some strangely exact copy of him stole the painting, and then turned to the camera. " _Top o' the mornin' to ya_ ," he said before casually walking away. Everyone on the video was too aghast to stop him.

"Not only is that person a fake, he's a terrible fake!" Jack got up from his couch, but already, in the distance, he could hear police sirens coming for him.

Surprisingly, Plagg also panicked, but not before stuffing his cheese into his mouth. "That guy looks exactly like you! It has to be an Akuma!"

"I've kind of already figured that out," Jack groans as he heads for the door. "Plagg, stay close to me. When I open this door, I dunno what will happen next." Plagg obeyed and floated behind his master. Jack slowly opened the door and tried not to scream at the sight in front of him. There was one policeman who looked to be the chief, because all the others were dressed in what Jack could only describe as SWAT gear. There were a few cars, and the whole group was pointed at Jack's house.

All of this for a painting!? The chief of police said through a megaphone, _"Stay there or we'll have to use force!"_

Jack tried to reason with the cops. "Whoa! Easy, tigers! You've got the wrong man! That thief's an imposter. I'm the real JackSepticEye!"

" _There may be people who imitate you, but I'm pretty sure I know JackSepticEye when I see him steal a painting,"_ the chief officer pointed out.

"Shit," Jack uttered under his breath. As the cops got closer to him, Jack did the stupidest thing one could do in this situation and ran back into his house. Of course, the cops followed him inside. Jack ran upstairs and fortunately, he found the ladder to the roof before the police could catch up. Jack's house had a flat roof like many contemporary houses in Los Angeles. He ran across the roof and to the edge, where his fear of heights kicked in. Even as Chat Noir, he hadn't completely overcome his fear, but he couldn't let the police catch up to him.

"PARKOUR!" Jack shouted as he jumped from one building to another, probably to lessen his other fear of falling to his death while doing so. Despite being well-trained and well-armed, the police could barely keep up with him; it looked like his training as Chat Noir was paying off. One officer nearly fell off the roof, but Jack didn't have time to worry about him.

Soon, Jack had escaped the police's stern chase, but he could still hear the car sirens not far away. "Well, I guess there's only one way to hide from these guys…" Jack secured the ring on his finger and shouted, "PLAGG, GET YOUR FECKIN' CLAWS OUT!" After turning into Chat Noir, he sighed, feeling like the giant weight of being chased for a crime he didn't commit was finally off his shoulders. "Let's see if Ladybug can help me with this…" Using his staff, he made his way across town to Mark's house.

* * *

Mark was in his room, taking a nap after the convention, but then he heard the doorbell ring. He came downstairs and answered the door. Mark looked at Chat, both thankful nobody else answered the door. Chat explained as he came in, "Okay, I don't think you've heard about what's going on, but there's a robber Jack on the loose- he stole a painting from th' Getty. I'm hidin' out as Chat Noir until we catch the thief." Chat sighed as he took it all in. "I once dated myself, but this is ridiculous."

Mark frowned as he tried to comprehend all his friend just told him. "This…is a lot to take in."

"Yeah, that sums up my feelin's exactly. You know I'm innocent, don't you, Bug-boy?"

As much as Mark wanted to say "no" as a joke, this was serious- his friend could spend actual time in jail if they didn't catch the imposter. He replied, "Yeah, but we need proof that the person imitating you is an Akuma."

"Wait, don't your superpowers as Ladybug restore things the Akuma did to normal?"

Mark nodded, not sure where Jack was going with this. "Uh, yeah, why?"

"If we can de-Akumatize this… Copyjack, the painting will end up back at Getty anyway." Chat smirked. "All we need to do is catch the Akuma, and I'll be safe!" Mark wanted to speak up, but Chat kept talking. "We should split up. Let me check out where the robbery took place. I have a knack for finding clues. You know, animal instincts." Chat Noir's cat ears flicked. "You can try to find the Akuma from evidence at th' Getty. I'm gonna try and deduce who the Akuma is and stop 'im."

Ladybug's eyes widened. "Wait, what? First, Jack, that's incredibly dangerous going on your own, since only I can capture Akumas. Second, Los Angeles is a big place, and Space Butterfly could target anyone who's upset."

"But they're obviously upset with me. What other reason would they have to become me, and then make me out to be a thief?"

"I-It could just be some angry fan, or maybe some sort of ha-!"

That's when it clicked in Chat's mind: an angry fan, and the angry Markiplier fan from the convention. She had every reason to be upset with him- he called for security to get her out of the line, after all. "It has to be that crazy fan! The one from the convention! What was her name? Tammy?"

"Tandy," Ladybug corrected him. "There still could be a lot of 'Tandy's in Los Angeles."

"Then there's no time to lose." Chat went to a nearby window and then jumped from it.

"CHAT! GET BACK HERE!" Mark yelled, but the cat hero didn't listen. Mark sighed and looked at Tikki. "We need to stop him before he does something stupid." He shouted, "TIKKI, TRANSFORM ME!" Ladybug swung after Chat Noir, trying to find out where he'd gone.

* * *

"She probably avoided goin' to my house," Chat Noir muttered as he sat on top of someone's roof, "so she must be at her own place. But where the heck is that?" He pulled out his staff and started using the "magical" Internet capabilities it had. First, he typed in the name "Tandy" on Facebook. Second, he limited the search to the Los Angeles area. Lastly, he found Tandy's profile picture. He found a clearer address, and then…he found her house.

It was a big apartment by Los Angeles standards, with multiple skylight windows across the roof. From where he was, Chat Noir easily opened a skylight and landed on the floor of Tandy's apartment like a cat. It looked normal, except Tandy wasn't around. Then, Chat noticed the painting the news thought Jack stole: Lot and his Sons. Geez, if Copyjack was the real culprit, he probably should've hidden it—even Jack knew better than to leave stolen things lying out.

"You know, I thought I was supposed to find you," someone said from behind Chat Noir. He turned around to see Copyjack, who to Chat, looked like a strange, smug mirror. "That's what Space Butterfly told me, anyway."

"I managed to track you down." Chat Noir pulled out his staff. "I tried being nice at the con, but I guess you're not going down without a fight."

Copyjack chuckled, "I didn't picture a cat as an expert tracker. How _did_ you find me?"

"If you wanted to damage my reputation, yer first mista—!" Chat slapped a hand over his mouth as he realized he just made a mistake of his own: revealing his identity to the Akuma.

"Sean…William…McLoughlin," Copyjack growled as he got closer to Chat Noir, looking like he was staring through him, at the man behind the mask. "Do you think an Akumatized person would fall for such an obvious disguise?" The black mist overtook Copyjack's body again, and he changed into a perfect copy of Chat Noir.

The real Chat Noir glared at Copyjack. "Do you think Ladybug won't notice the difference?"

"Not if I tell him what happened first!" Copyjack pounced for Chat, but he dodged out of the way, clutching his staff tightly. Copyjack pulled out his staff, and the two of them fought with their similar weapons. Every hit was countered by the other's staff, until Copyjack managed to gain the upper hand by knocking Chat's staff out of his hands. Instead of going for his own staff, Chat Noir tried to pull Copyjack's from his grip. Copyjack feinted with his free hand and spun his staff into Chat's side while the hero was distracted. Chat grabbed the staff again, centimeters from hitting him in the abdomen.

Copyjack pulled the staff out of Chat Noir's hands and kicked him in the crotch. Chat Noir groaned, on the floor from the hit, "That was…a low blow…"

"Well, I could kill you from here…" Copyjack says, pointing the staff at Chat's head, "but one Chat Noir being dead while another runs around wouldn't be good for my image, would it?"

"Says the guy who stole my identity to ruin it," Chat groans, still trying to recover from the groin attack. Before he can recover, Copyjack grabs him and uses a roll of conveniently-placed duct tape to secure him to a wood pillar. Copyjack grabbed Chat Noir's staff and called Ladybug up.

The Akuma saw Ladybug on the other end, looking worried. " _Chat, where have you been? You shouldn't have gone after Tandy on your own like that_."

"I know, but I got lucky and found her place. Meet me at 22 Thompson Street."

" _Don't move, Chat- I'll be there right away!_ "

"See you, Ladybug." After the call was over, Copyjack turned back to the tied-up Chat Noir. "I can't believe the famous Youtuber is also a semi-famous superhero." He smirked. "How did you find the time to do it all?"

"Well, it's not easy. I've had to stop uploading one video a day, an'…" Chat Noir glared at him. "Ya know what? Talk time's over. Ladybug will know the truth- he can tell the difference between you an' me like night and day."

" _Stop toying around_ ," Space Butterfly growled inside Copyjack's head, " _and grab Chat Noir's Miraculous_."

Copyjack sighed and grabbed for Chat's ring, but the hero stopped him. "Wait! If you take away my Miraculous, Ladybug will realize who's the fake: the one _not_ wearing the ring, o-or the one with two rings. Plus, you can grab both Miraculous at once when Ladybug gets here."  
Copyjack considered his words, and then smirked. "You make a very convincing point, but don't expect to stay Chat Noir for much longer."

Soon, Ladybug arrived by jumping into a window that was in Tandy's room. As he looked around, Ladybug found a shrine dedicated to, well, himself, as Markiplier: pictures from his earliest days on YouTube, to when his hair was pink, blue, red, and then back to black. He didn't usually criticize his fans like this, but he couldn't help but mutter sarcastically, "Oh, this isn't creepy at all."

Then, he heard two people talking in the other room- actually, it sounded like one person talking, and the other trying to talk, like they were hindered. Ladybug snuck up to the door and pushed it open slightly to observe. He saw one version of Chat tied up, with duct tape over his mouth, and another pacing around, but he couldn't exactly hear what they were saying. All Ladybug knew was he couldn't tell one Chat from the other.

 _Jesus!_ he thought. _Whoever this guy is must be copying Jack down to the cells he's made of…_ But this gave Ladybug an idea: Copyjack probably knew Chat Noir was Jack, but he didn't know that Ladybug was Mark. The hero just needed Copyjack to screw up, so he'd know which cat was which. Then, Ladybug came into the room, trying not to look like he was just eavesdropping.

Copyjack looked at Ladybug as he came in and smirked. "There ya are."

"Well, you two definitely…look a lot alike," Ladybug commented, still not sure who was who. "Do you know where the Akuma is?"

"It's in his ring." Copyjack pointed at Chat Noir's tied-up hand, and Chat whimpered, struggling against the duct tape.

Ladybug reached out for "Copyjack's" ring but hesitated as he realized something. _Wait, why would Copyjack, who was copying_ Jack _, have the Akuma in a ring, exactly like Chat Noir? This is suspicious…_

"Why are you hesitating?" Copyjack asked. "He's right there tied up with a bow! Well, I wish I had a bow…"

"I need to prove you're the real Chat." Ladybug stood up and looked at the imposter. He knew just the way to prove who he was talking to was the fake. "If you're my partner, I guess you know _my_ secret identity." Ladybug smirked, leaning in close. "We told each other a long time ago."

"Um, y-yeah, I remember." Copyjack nodded, but Ladybug could already see through his disguise. "J-Just give me a minute. It's been a while since we talked out of costume."

"Actually, we just talked this afternoon- about capturing you, FAKER!" It didn't take Ladybug long to pin Copyjack down. "I don't know how you learned Jack and Chat Noir are the same person, but I'm gonna make sure you don't learn _my_ identity!"

" _You're so close to Ladybug,"_ Space Butterfly told Copyjack. _"Get his Miraculous!"_

"Maybe I should cut out the middleman and destroy you!" Copyjack threw his hand into the air and shouted, "CATYCLYSM!" Copyjack's hand was so close to Ladybug's face that the superhero had no choice but to get off him.

Now put in a corner, Ladybug had no choice but to yell, "LUCKY CHARM!" He threw his yo-yo into the air, and from it appeared… a machete. Of all the things that could've come from the Lucky Charm, Ladybug wasn't expecting a real weapon. He looked around and a few key items turned the same ladybug pattern of the machete: Copyjack himself, his Cataclysm-charged hand, and the duct tape around Chat Noir. Ladybug smirked and pointed the machete at Copyjack. "Now I know you think I'm above physically hurting someone who messed with my partner…"

"H-H-Hey…" Copyjack slowly backed up. "I didn't want to, ya know, kill you…"

Ladybug moved forward but kept the machete at a safe distance. After several steps, he stopped walking and said, "Well, you'd be right."

"Huh?" Copyjack uttered before he realized he was now touching the duct tape he'd tied Chat Noir up in _with his Cataclysm-charged hand_. The duct tape fell to the floor in loose strands, now devoid of the stickiness that duct tape was known for.

Chat Noir ripped the last piece of duct tape from his mouth… which was just as painful as you'd think. "YAH!" he screamed. "Christ, that stings!" Before Copyjack could take advantage of Chat's pain again, Chat yelled, "CATACLYSM!" Chat Noir's claws hit Copyjack directly in the chest. Instead of hurting Copyjack directly, his hoodie became a shredded Cloak hoodie, which promptly fell off. From the rags of Tandy's hoodie flew an Akuma.

Ladybug shouted, "I'm freeing you from evil!" and swung his yo-yo around, grabbing the Akuma before it flew away. "Gotcha." He let the harmless go, and then threw the machete. The magic restored the painting to the Getty and repaired Tandy's shredded hoodie.

Copyjack turned back, first into Jack, and then into Tandy. By the time she was back to normal, Chat Noir and Ladybug were already making their way to a hiding spot, so they could transform discreetly. As they ran, Ladybug asked, "Do you think she'll remember your secret identity?"

Chat Noir replied, "Well, you know what they say: 'An elephant never forgets, but an Akuma always does.'"

"...No one has ever said that."


End file.
